


Easy decision

by bunnysworld



Series: Bonded to magic [18]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bonding, Druids, M/M, Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-15
Updated: 2019-09-15
Packaged: 2020-10-19 00:48:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20648462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunnysworld/pseuds/bunnysworld
Summary: Merlin doesn't want Arthur to leave. But what will Arthur do?





	Easy decision

**Author's Note:**

> Not beta'd.
> 
> Part of the Bonded to Magic series.

"Merlin! Merlin, where are you?"

Merlin tried to curl up even more where he sat on the floor in the corner, hugging his knees. 

The door opened and Arthur came in. "Merlin, why did you leave the meeting? Where are..."

Sniffing and trying to wipe the tears away with the back of his hand, Merlin didn't look at Arthur when he noticed him there. Arthur knelt next to him in no time. 

"What...? Merlin?"

A new sob choked Merlin. Why did Arthur sound so concerned when he didn't care about him at all? He would leave, go back to Camelot and that was the end of it. It hurt so much. 

"What's wrong?" Arthur reached out for him, but it looked as if he didn't dare to touch him, confusion on his face. 

It took Merlin a while before he could even glare at him. So there was nothing wrong at all with leaving everything they had behind? It was so alright that Arthur didn't even understand?

Arthur looked miserable. "Talk to me?"

"You..." Merlin sobbed. 

"Me?..."

"You're leaving!" Merlin buried his face in his arm. He was shaking, every muscle in his body tense, anticipating Arthur's 'yes'. 

"Huh? What makes you think that?" Arthur sat back on his haunches. 

"The king ordered you back, you're going to leave." It wasn't fair! It just wasn't fair! They had barely had time to be good together and now it was over! Merlin felt like throwing up. 

Arthur blinked. "He did not order me back."

"Isn't that what he meant?" Merlin spat and looked at the wall opposite to him, not even trying to wipe his tears away anymore. 

Arthur nudged him. "It's probably what he meant, but he didn't say it."

"But you're going anyway. Don't tell me otherwise, I saw your face!" 

Sighing, Arthur wiped a hand over his face. "You seem to be set on me just vanishing before you even hear me out. I'm not leaving."

Sniffing, Merlin threw him a glance. "You seemed to be pretty happy to finally being able to get out of here."

"There's a difference between having the possibility and actually doing it." 

"What do you mean?" Why was he even talking to him, he would be gone soon and leave him all alone. 

"Merlin..." Arthur scrambled around and sat against the wall next to him. "I was sent here without knowing that I had to stay. I wasn't allowed to go back. I could have left, but then I'd never have seen Camelot again. All the patrols since my arrival brought messages that made it clear that I was ordered to stay."

"And you hated it." Merlin sniffed again. 

"In the beginning, yes. But then..." He nudges Merlin with his elbow again and smiled. "I don't hate it anymore."

"You don't?"

"Well, I hate when you snore so loudly that it wakes me up." He tried to bite back a grin. "Or when your feet are stinky. Or when you cook 'soup'..."

Merlin was about to protest. Arthur was snoring just as much and his feet didn't smell of flowers in the spring either after a day in boots. He couldn't help but chuckling slightly at the mention of the 'soup'-incident when Arthur had thought he had cooked a soup and helped himself to it when in fact it was a remedy for tummy aches and had made him fart all night long. 

"But other than that...it took me a while to get used to it, it's so different from Camelot, but I feel at home here." Arthur gave him a careful smile. "And it's where you are."

Merlin blinked at him and swallowed hard. "You're...you're staying?"

Arthur nodded.

"For me?"

Arthur nodded again. "Yes. I have a feeling we're not quite done with what we are supposed to do here."

"But...then you're going to leave." It would be exactly what he had wanted in the beginning. To get it done and over with. Now, he wanted Arthur to stay. He liked Arthur a lot. 

Arthur looked at him for a long while. "Not without you."


End file.
